Celebrating the Anniversary of the TPNW

Youth Activists Celebrate the First Anniversary of the Nuclear Ban Treaty
By Reverse The Trend

What was once a dream is now in the process of becoming a reality. On January 22, 2021, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) entered into force and the international community declared that nuclear weapons are illegal.

This is an historic moment, and we recognize the one-year anniversary of the TPNW. 

There is new energy amongst the youth. Many of us were either born at the end of the Cold War or afterwards. The Cold War, not to mention World War II, has faded further into the annals of history.  For this new generation of youth known as Gen-Z, the legacy and impact of the atomic bombings were not part of their upbringing. The absence of an emotional connection to the dangers of nuclear weapons has resulted in a drastically weakened understanding of the greatest existential threat facing humanity.

The one-year anniversary of the TPNW provides us with an opportunity to empower and educate young people. In fact, a new surge of youth activists, linked to Reverse the Trend,  are using the anniversary to educate their peers, galvanize support, and hold the Nuclear Weapon States, especially the United States of America, accountable for failing to sign and ratify the treaty.

Recently, at a rally in New York City, which saw civil society members gather and demand that the United States sign and ratify the TPNW, Emma Pike, a peace educator and youth activist with Reverse The Trend, said the following: “former United States President John F. Kennedy is famously quoted as saying ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.’ While these are beautiful words, I believe that today, we need to be asking what our country can do for us. Rather, what is the bare minimum that our country should do for us? I say that before anything, a country’s most fundamental duty to its citizens and inhabitants is to keep them safe, and to never infringe upon their right to exist, their right to life. The possession and development of nuclear weapons is, of course, the ultimate infringement on our right to life.” 

The TPNW, passed by 122 nations in July of 2017, addresses the humanitarian and environmental impacts of nuclear weapons. “There are only two possible endings to the story of nuclear weapons,” said Beatrice Fihn, Director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, 2017 recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. “Either we end nuclear weapons, or they will us. There is no other possible ending.”

We, the youth, will not allow nuclear weapons to end us. We are determined to fight for a world free from nuclear weapons. In pursuit of this goal, youth from around the world have formed Reverse The Trend with multiple chapters, all with the aim of amplifying the voices of youth from affected communities and urging states to adhere to international humanitarian law.

Another one of our youth coordinators, Akemi Terukina, emphasized the importance of Reverse The Trend and of the fight for nuclear disarmament noting that she feels “honored to be able to fight for nuclear disarmament at this historical moment where the norm is starting to change.” Akemi also vowed that she “will continue to learn and act more to be part of the solution,” and urged her peers to do the same. 

We are ready to spark a revolution amongst youth, a revolution against the status quo set forth by the Nuclear Weapon States and change the world. We warmly welcome the one-year anniversary of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

This drive marks the determination amongst the youth activists of RTT. We are ready to reverse the trend!